A Year to Remember
by Apon16
Summary: Modern AU: Every ending has its journey, and some argue that this is the most important part. This particular adventure looks at the stumbling through life and what it entails; romance, awkward situations, and funny moments follow as the 104th Trainee Squad stumbles through college.
1. August

**A Year to Remember- Chapter 1: August**

* * *

 **~August 15th: A Stumbling Beginning~**

"Eren! Wake up, we are almost there" Carla Jaeger spoke in a soft voice, reaching into the back seat to shake her son awake. Eren snapped up, his green eyes dull from fatigue. He rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up. A soft giggle comes from the person sitting next to him in the backseat of the car. Without looking, he reached out and delivered a swift punch to the giggling person's shoulder, at which he heared his name cried out in a complaining voice.

"Eren, be nice to Mikasa, she stayed awake this whole time to help us with directions while you were snoozing away" Eren's father, Grisha, said in a stern voice. Eren let out a groan. He finally allowed his eyes to open enough to take in the sight around him. His father was driving their SUV while his mother sat in the passenger's seat, knitting away at a scarf to replace the one Eren had given to Mikasa so many years ago. He would need it, as Trost was known to become unbearably freezing in the winter. Sitting opposite Eren in the back seat was his somewhat adopted sister, Mikasa Ackerman. Her parents were killed in a robbery attempt as they exited a movie theater when she was nine, leaving her all alone. Eren did not know her that well then, but his father had frequently visited Mikasa's family as their family doctor. When Grisha had heard about the accident, he extended the offer for Mikasa to come live with them from then on, which she accepted.

From that day onward, Mikasa had grown close to Eren and their next door neighbor, Armin Arlert. The trio were inseparable, always being together up to this day, where they were all eighteen and heading to college. Mikasa and Armin had earned acceptance easily into the University of Trost, the most prestigious university in the region. Eren, however, squeaked by and barely made the cut, most likely because he had Armin's help on the application essays. Either way, they all made it into the university with an unbelievably high rate of employment coming straight out of college at ninety percent. Not only that, they all got to continue their antics together, as opposed to be separated as they had feared would happen. Eren was going to room with Armin in the Scout Dormitory, while Mikasa was rooming with a girl from the country on the floor above Eren.

Now that Eren was awake, he took in the huge city around him. He had thought their home city of Shiganshina was big, but Trost dwarfed it. Skyscrapers and tall headquarter buildings surrounded the car, and up in front Eren could see the large silver gates accented with the words "The University of Trost" above them, forming an arch. Eren glanced from the expanse of green fields past the gate to Mikasa. Her long black hair fell halfway down her back and was brushed to perfection. There was a certain shine to her hair that Eren still had no idea how she managed. Her eyes were a dark grey, almost black, but kindness and determination shone at all times in them. Her pale skin shone in the sunlight that came through the car windows. She was wearing her usual clothing; jeans and a plain white shirt, with Eren's red scarf wrapped around her neck. He never understood why she still wore it, much less why she never took it off. Eren had given her the scarf when her parents had died, since it was the middle of January and freezing outside. Mikasa always seemed to get cold easily, but that still didn't explain why she wore it in the middle of the summer. Eren let out a sigh and looked back at the university, deciding he would never understand women. He didn't even notice Mikasa was blushing, since she had seen Eren staring at her.

Mikasa tucked her face into the scarf, unable to breathe as she noticed the man she loved with her whole heart had been staring at her. Ever since she had met Eren and he had given her that scarf, she had fallen deeply in love with him. She knew he didn't see her as anything more than a friend, but she was perfectly fine with that. Because of that fact, she was able to see him all the time. Sometimes she would even sneak off and spend the night in Eren's bed, which he allowed because he never felt anything more than he did when he had sleepovers with Armin. Those nights, Mikasa's heart would race and she would fall asleep in bliss as she felt Eren's breathing next to her. She was sad that she wouldn't be able to do that now that they were staying in the dorms, but at least she still had his scarf, the one piece of security that she kept with her at all times.

"Alright you two, we are only five minutes away. Eren, help Mikasa take all her stuff up before you take yours" Grisha Jaeger spoke from the front of the car. Eren's jaw dropped at what he heard.

"What? Why do I have to help Mikasa first? She is a strong girl and can handle it!" Eren started complaining, as was usual when he was asked to do something. Mikasa tucked her face into her scarf once again.

"It's fine, I can get it myself" She said meekly from behind her scarf, barely audible. She hated when Eren was upset and would do whatever she could to fix it. Carla turned around and smiled at her.

"Now, dear, Eren would be happy to help" Carla shot her son a look to stop him from back-talking before continuing. "You haven't met your roommate before, while Eren is rooming with Armin. You should have a little backup this time, at least to make you a little more comfortable. Besides, you have over half of the stuff in this car and could use the help."

With that, Eren crossed his arms over his chest and sat back, deciding not to speak and just go along. At least it couldn't be that bad, he never had an issue with helping Mikasa. She was one of his best friends, after all. He let out a sigh and stared at the dormitory that would serve as his home for the next few years. It was made of dark brown brick, made to look wooden to represent how the dorm was originally a log cabin for the first dean. Now, it extended upwards for six stories and was wide enough for forty rooms per floor. Eren and Armin's room was on the third floor, while Mikasa was going to live on the fourth. Eren opened his door once they parked, letting the sunlight and warm air pour onto his skin while he stretched out his cramped legs. He was wearing black athletic shorts and a grey V-neck that accented his muscles from all the time he spent in taekwondo. Mikasa opened the trunk of the blue SUV as Eren walked around to look at all of her stuff. Sure enough, her clothes and other decorations took up far more space than Eren's. Groaning, he went to the front desk to get a dolly that would make the trips much easier. After loading up about half of Mikasa's stuff, Eren pushed the dolly while she walked in front of him to open the doors and guide him. They took the elevator up to the fourth floor and walked all the way down the hall to the last room on the right. Mikasa went to unlock the door but found it was already open. She gulped and prepared herself to meet the girl that she would be spending her days with for a while.

As she opened the door all the way, she noticed that her roommate had already picked out and decorated her side of the room. She also noticed all of the food that was stored in bins underneath her roommate's bed, almost as if they had their own restaurant in their tiny, tan painted room. Sure enough, Eren had noticed as well.

"She must really enjoy eating, quite a bit different from you" Eren muttered in a low voice. Before Mikasa could turn to hit him, a head peered out from behind the wall in the room. To Mikasa's surprise, a slim girl with brown hair and striking chestnut eyes appeared before them. Before she knew it, Mikasa was wrapped in a tight hug by the now energetic girl that was her roommate.

"You must be Mikasa! My name is Sasha Blouse, I'm your roommate!" Sasha yelled in a voice that was far beyond happy. Eren choked back a laugh as he thought about how different this ball of energy and the quiet force that was Mikasa were.

"It's nice to meet you, I am sorry for all the stuff I have" Mikasa said a little embarrassed as she looked back at the full dolly.

"Oh it's no problem! As you can see, I packed in quite a bit on my side as well!" Sasha exclaimed with a huge grin. Eren sighed from behind the dolly and proceeded to drown out the rest of the girl's introductory talk, not wanting to get dragged into it. He dazed off for a little while, but was shaken back to reality by Mikasa.

"Hey, Eren! Are you listening?"

"Oh uh, no sorry I must have dozed off" Eren scratched his head at the two girls stared at him.

"This is Sasha, my roommate" Mikasa said, which Eren assumed she must have said before she had snapped him out of his daydream.

"I'm Eren, Mikasa's friend" Eren reached out to shake Sasha's hand, but noticed a strange grin on the girl's face.

"I see! Mikasa you have quite the catch!" Sasha's comment was immediately met with red faces and the two in front of her shaking their heads frantically.

"No you have it wrong, Eren is more my brother than anything else! It is kind of hard to explain" Mikasa desperately tried to explain as her face flushed a deep crimson. Sasha eyed the two with doubt, but decided to let it slide.

"Well you can explain it all to me after you get you stuff unpacked! Come on, let's hurry! I can't wait to get to know you!" Sasha started helping Mikasa take the stuff off the dolly until it was empty, prompting Eren to go down and get the rest of her stuff. He found his parents waiting for him at the car.

"How is her roommate?" Eren's father asked. Eren shrugged and continued to unpack the SUV.

"She certainly isn't short on energy. She seems to mean well, even if she thought I was Mikasa's boyfriend"

Eren was too busy unpacking to notice the big smile that his mother gave his father, a look that showed both knowing and hopefulness. It was no secret to anybody that Carla wanted her son and Mikasa to become a couple, as she had come to love Mikasa to no bounds. The two acted as mother and daughter, even if they weren't related. It would give her nothing but happiness if Mikasa really did become part of the family, and she was quite the catch either way. Mikasa was smart, athletic, beautiful, and one of the few people that could calm Eren down when he went into one of his angry phases.

After finally loading up the dolly again, Eren once again returned to Mikasa's room and helped her get organized before starting to get his own stuff. It only took one trip to get Eren's things to his room. Armin was already there, so it took less than thirty minutes to get unpacked. Eren sat down on his bed, which was directly across from Armin's. He looked at his best friend, the guy who always had his back. Armin had long blonde hair and clear blue eyes, but his brains were the best part of him. He always came up with ways to get out of the trouble that Eren caused, while Mikasa was the one who executed those plans. That was how all three of them fit together like puzzle pieces. Eren attempted to do something fun with all of them, which almost always failed, leaving Armin to figure out how to turn things around and Mikasa to do the turning around. They were all perfect for each other.

"You excited for this year?" Eren spoke up, getting Armin's attention away from organizing textbooks.

"Yeah, I bet this is going to be great. Think about all the freedom we will have. We can get out and explore, all of us. And I'm sure we will meet people along the way to add to our group, and we will only have more fun from there."

Eren smiled and leaned back against the wall that his bed was pushed against. Armin was a legendary optimist, and he wouldn't have it any other way. He certainly could not wait to see what all this year was going to bring for them. Remembering that he had to say goodbye to his parents, he excused himself from the room and rushed downstairs to find his mother and father, along with Mikasa, waiting for him.

"Finally. Now you two remember not to get into trouble. And by that I mean Eren don't do anything that Mikasa can't get you out of" Grisha said with a smile. Eren was about to retort but his mom quickly embraced both him and Mikasa.

"My two babies, heading off together. Please be safe! Focus on your grades, have fun, and please just make it to Christmas break in one piece! I would like to see you both again!" Carla was starting to break down into tears. Grisha stepped up to hug Mikasa and shake Eren's hand.

"Everything your mother said, I second. Now I better get out of here before your mother decides to just live with you two." With that, Grisha pulled Carla into the car and drove off, leaving Eren and Mikasa to finally start their first year of college. Both of them felt excitement and nervousness as they turned to return to their own respective dorm rooms, giving each other a hug before parting for the time being.

* * *

 **~August 18** **th** **: The First Class~**

Eren set his backpack underneath his seat as he straightened out a few sheets of notebook paper on his desk. He wrote down "History of Trost" at the top of his paper, ready for his first class of college. Fortunately, he was surrounded by familiar faces. To either side sat Armin and Mikasa. They all had made sure to get at least one class together, and since everyone was required to take this class, everything turned out perfect. It was by chance that Mikasa's roommate, Sasha, happened to take this exact class as well, so she sat on the other side of Mikasa.

"Are you guys ready for this?" Sasha asked with excitement spread across her face.

"Of course, what could be hard about history?" Eren almost scoffed at how ridiculous the thought of history being hard was. However, a guy in front of him shifted around to stare at Eren. This particular guy had lighter brown hair, brown eyes and a longer face than normal.

"Apparently very hard. The professor is supposed to be one of the most difficult ones at Trost. But I guess you should have known that" The guy said with a lot of sarcasm. Eren quickly found rage building in his gut, which Mikasa tried to quell by placing a hand on his shoulder. At seeing this, the guy in front of them suddenly went slack jawed, staring at Mikasa. He shakily reached out a hand, as if going for a handshake.

"H-hi….My name is Jean. Jean Kirstein" Jean was going red in the face. Mikasa hesitated before shaking his hand.

"Mikasa Ackerman" She replied in a bored tone. Before Jean could say more, the two guys next to him turned around to talk to everyone behind them. The one to the left of Jean had a shaved head and brown eyes that seemed to hold a lot of excitement. The one to Jean's right had black hair and freckles and seemed shyer than the other two. The one with the shaved head spoke first.

"My name is Connie Springer! Don't mind Jean here, he is a little blunt!" Connie's words were met by a glare from Jean.

"Connie, I met you five minutes ago" Jean stated rather bluntly.

"See! Besides, you only need five minutes to get to know a person!" Connie's confidence was unshakable, Eren concluded in his mind. The boy with freckles finally spoke up after this.

"I'm Marco Bott. I'm Jean's roommate this year"

"Well it's nice to meet all of you. I'm Armin Arlert" Armin gestured to himself, "and this is Eren Jaeger and Sasha Blouse!" Armin motioned towards the other two. Before anybody could say anymore, a loud crash was heard at the front of the class. The class went silent as they all turned to face the front. A short man wearing a green suit with black hair and grey eyes had slapped the front desk with a ruler, drawing attention to himself. He cleared his throat before speaking.

"I am Professor Levi. This is History of Trost, and this will be one of the hardest classes you will take during you time here. I will shape you into the students that you need to be, and you will thank more for it or drop this class. Any questions? Good." Levi turned around and began writing a timeline of events on the blackboard behind him. Eren leaned over to whisper to Armin.

"Isn't the first day of class supposed to be the day we go over the syllabus or something?"

"That's how it is supposed to be, but I guess this Levi guy doesn't like to mess around" Armin replied. Eren leaned back in his chair, unpleased with how this day was going. He began writing notes to match Levi's writing, all of which about the civil war that took place in this region a while back between the government armies of Trost and Shiganshina and the rebellion force, which called themselves the Titans. The war had gone on for over a century and was a bloody war, ultimately ending with the Titans being defeated. Sixty years had passed, leaving the present day world. Between then and now, much rebuilding had gone on in Trost, leaving the beautiful city how it was today. While Eren was trying to show that he was upset, he couldn't help but be amazed at how much had happened before he had been born. He knew this class was going to be interesting, but he wasn't sure if he was going to enjoy it, due to Levi.

The bell finally rung, signaling Levi to stop writing and turn back towards the class.

"There will be a quiz next class over everything I taught today. Hopefully you took good notes" Levi announced before turning on his heel and heading out of the classroom. A collective groan from everyone filled his absence.

"A quiz already? This is some cruel punishment" Connie cried out, staring at his paper where he had taken very few notes.

"Yeah hopefully this isn't a normal thing. Hey, why don't we get together tomorrow and study?" Armin suggested, showing his papers that were full of notes, causing Connie's eyes to light up.

"That sounds like a great idea, Armin! I can already tell we will be the best of friends!" Sasha agreed with the same excitement that she always had. Marco gave a nod, which Armin took to mean he also wanted to meet up.

"I think I remember seeing a coffee shop called The Rose Wall over by the Scout Dorm, why don't we meet up there tomorrow night at seven?" Armin offered to the group, and was met with notices of agreement from everyone. As the rest of the group began to pack up to leave, Armin couldn't help but notice the trio in front of him. Jean was glancing back at Mikasa with a heavy blush on his face, obviously excited about seeing her the next day and probably thinking it was a date. Mikasa, meanwhile, was tucking her face into her scarf to hide her blush as she stared at Eren, also excited at the thought of spending time with him. Armin had figured out Mikasa's love for Eren a long time ago, but decided to let everything happen naturally. He knew deep down Eren probably felt the same way, but was too stubborn to notice. It's a good thing that Armin had the patience of a saint since he had waited many years for this to happen. Finally, Eren completed the triangle as he glared at Jean. This time, there was no love or excitement in the person's glare. Eren was obviously angry that he had to see Jean outside of class, as it seemed that Eren had chosen Jean as his rival. Armin sighed and clasped a hand on Eren's shoulder, which seemed to snap all three of them out of it.

"Come on, Eren. We need to get to our next class. Mikasa, enjoy your math class, we will see you either tonight or tomorrow night. Same goes to everyone else!" Armin offered a smile and a wave to everyone as he pushed Eren towards the door.

* * *

 **~August 19** **th** **: The Rose Wall~**

"I don't get why we have to spend the night with Kirstein" Eren groaned from his bed, not wanting to get up to go to the study group. Armin shifted around in his desk chair so that he could see Eren.

"We need to study for this quiz, I promised your mom I'd make sure that you didn't fail out right away. Besides, we need to make new friends here. That's part of college" Armin said with a bit of annoyance. Eren had been complaining all day about tonight, and it wasn't getting any better.

"Wow I'm glad my mom is so confident in me. And we could have had a study group without him, I doubt he has anything to offer other than flirting with Mikasa" Eren said the last part with a bit of an angry scoff. Unseen, Armin grinned with a knowing look, happy that his suspicions about Eren's feelings seemed to be correct.

"What did you want me to do, Eren? Just casually tell Jean he wasn't invited? You know I don't do things like that. Plus nobody seems to have an issue with him but you. If I didn't know any better, I would say it's because you secretly have feelings for Mikasa" Armin turned so that Eren couldn't see his smirk, pleased when he heard Eren choke on the water he was drinking.

"Th-that's ridiculous! Mikasa is nothing but a friend. Fine, I won't pick a fight with him tonight. Let's just get going, it's almost six thirty."

Armin gathered his noted into his binder and placed them into his backpack. He slung it over his shoulder and followed Eren out the door, stopping for a second to look at his appearance in the full body mirror that was hung over the back of the door. The two of them took the elevator downstairs and walked the two blocks to The Rose Wall. The coffee shop was small and had multiple round tables, obviously a spot made specifically for students to gather. Eren and Armin found a table in the back corner that would be big enough for their group. It was a little dark, but Armin could still read his notes so he was sure that it was not an issue. It didn't take long for the rest of the group to start showing up, and soon enough everyone was there. Armin looked through the notes and was about to start reviewing when a waitress came up to them.

"What would everyone like?" She said in a monotone voice, obviously not enjoying her job. Armin was about to reply but found his words caught in his throat. In front of him was a beautiful girl with blue eyes and blonde hair like his. Her nametag said Annie, and Armin found that she took his words away. Thankfully, Sasha seemed to make up for his lack of words immediately.

"I'll take the pound cake! Oh and a scone! And an apple!" Sasha ordered with excitement, bringing everyone's attention to her love of food. Annie raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything as she scribbled down the order. Everyone else just ordered coffee, with Eren and Connie also ordering blueberry muffins. Once Annie had finished taking the order and left, Armin turned to look back down at his notes, hoping his blush was not too obvious. Unfortunately for him, it must have been, since Sasha was giving a knowing grin from her spot next to Mikasa.

" _Please don't say anything please don't say anything"_ Armin repeated in his head as he thought he saw Sasha about to burst from her excitement.

"Sooooo Armin" Sasha started.

" _Why? Why can't she just not say anything"_ Armin continued thinking, unable to say anything as the rest of the group turned their attention towards Sasha.

"When are you gonna go talk to Annie? Or are you going to wait until you aren't as red as a tomato?" Sasha giggled as the rest of the group turned to give Armin a universal look of shock at his apparent interest in the waitress.

"Armin? You finally like a girl! That's my best friend for you!" Eren seemed excited at the prospect of Armin getting a date. Armin had never expressed any interest in dating prior to this day, while Eren had his fair share of first dates, though he never got around to any follow up dates. That was most likely because Mikasa would glare at the girls whenever they tried to talk to Eren again.

" _Why can't you just concentrate on finally getting together with Mikasa?_ " Armin thought as he slumped his head down onto the table. The entire group laughed at Armin's misery, finally dying down for a moment when Annie brought them their order, then immediately resuming once she turned to leave.

" _At least they didn't say anything to-"_

"HEY! ANNIE!" Connie shouted out to the waitress. Armin's head shot up as he glared at the grinning boy across the table.

" _He…he wouldn't dare…right?"_ Armin's thoughts turned frantic, as he tried to shake his head to stop Connie. Unfortunately, Annie was back at their table in a heartbeat.

"Yes?" Annie said in her usual voice.

"My buddy here thinks you are cute and would like to take you out sometime" Connie's words doomed Armin into an eternal blush as the blonde boy desperately tried to think of a way out.

"Very well. I'll leave my phone number on the check" Annie replied without any hint of emotion before turning and leaving. Armin was shocked at what just happened.

"What….was that? Is that normal?" He asked the group. Unfortunately for him, everybody else was also confused on how to interpret what just happened. Nobody knew if she was excited or bored. Or if she even wanted to go on the date. Sasha was the one to finally break the silence.

"I'm not sure if it was normal, but either way you seem to have gotten yourself a date, Armin!" Her excitement had returned to her voice.

"I…I guess so. Well, before this can get any worse, why don't we actually do what we came here for?" Armin picked up his papers and started going over the notes before anybody could complain. Off across the coffee shop, a certain blonde waitress allowed a small grin to come to her face as she glanced back at Armin, before resuming her normal blank expression.

* * *

 **~August 27** **th** **: Nighttime Thoughts~**

In a dorm across campus from the Scout Dorm, Jean laid in bed with his hands behind his head, staring at the ceiling in the darkness. Marco's snores came from the bed across from him, but that wasn't what was keeping him up. He couldn't stop thinking of a certain beautiful girl, a thought that never failed to bring a smile to his face. What he wouldn't give to have Mikasa as his own. He was planning to ask her on a date in the coming weeks, which then brought him to the thought that never failed to remove the smile from his face. He had noticed the way Mikasa looked at Jaeger. He didn't know what she could possibly see in that hothead, and how she could have such strong feelings for him when he didn't seem to care about her at all. Either way, he decided that Jaeger was his archenemy, and he would not rest until he had Mikasa for his own. With that thought, he allowed himself to fall asleep, dreaming of how he would ask Mikasa to go out with him.

Across the campus on the fourth floor of the Scout Dorm, Mikasa laid in her bed, her thoughts consumed by a green eyed boy that she loved with all her heart. She desperately tried to think of ways to get Eren to notice her, but was too deathly afraid of rejection to just tell him about her love for him. She had talked to Armin about this a long time ago, but his advice had been to tell Eren, as he was too dense to ever realize it himself. Armin was also sure that Eren held the same feelings for Mikasa but was too stubborn to notice. Mikasa wasn't too sure, though, as she never saw Eren giving her the looks that she would give him. She inwardly sighed as she went back to thinking of ways to get Eren to notice her. Unknown to Mikasa, the girl in the bed opposite hers was having similar thoughts, but alternated between them being about Connie and about Eren.

On the floor below Mikasa, Eren sat on his bed strumming a few notes on his guitar, his lamp being the only source of light in the room.

"When do you think you are going to ask out that Annie chick?" Eren asked as he tried to play the first few notes of a love song from their childhood, seeming appropriate for this conversation. Armin rolled over in his bed to face Eren.

"I don't know. I'm pretty nervous. Where should I take her? What if it doesn't go well? I'll never be able to go back to The Rose Wall" Armin had hints of desperation in his voice, which caused Eren to stop playing and put his guitar back in its case.

"Relax, Armin. She gave you her number, so she is obviously interested. Just take her to get lunch or something, I'm sure everything will go fine."

"But what if she just gave me her number out of pity or something?"

"I doubt it, most girls I know will only show interest if they really want to. So I think you are in the clear." Eren's response seemed to calm Armin down a bit, as the blonde boy shifted onto his back and began taking slow, deep breaths.

"I guess you are right. I think I will ask her to get lunch next week, and hopefully everything will go well from there. What about you?" Armin asked, glancing over at Eren.

"What about me?"

"Aren't there any girls that you are interested in?" Armin's question made Eren pause and think before answering.

"I don't know. I guess Sasha is kind of cute, but I don't know if she is date worthy."

Eren's response left Armin stunned.

" _You are supposed to be going after Mikasa, not her roommate! If you go through with this, she will be crushed!"_ Armin tried to think of a way to get Eren off this track without being too straight to the point. After a minute, he could only come up with one thing.

"Well if she isn't date worthy, then who is?"

"Hmm. I don't know. I want somebody that I can be myself around and that I can joke with. Obviously she has to be beautiful, and caring and smart. I guess I have pretty high standards." Eren shrugged as he replied.

"Like Mikasa?" It took all of Armin's will power not to blurt his reply out, and thankfully it came out as nonchalantly as he hoped. Eren seemed to pause for a second, thinking over Mikasa's name.

"Maybe, but I doubt she would go for a guy like me" Eren turned on his side, ready to go to sleep. Once again, Armin had to resist telling Eren about how Mikasa truly felt.

"Why do you think that?"

"I think she just looks at me as a friend. And I don't exactly treat her great. She probably just thinks I am a brother to her" Eren began to sleep as Armin's head fumed.

"Well, maybe you should ask her out and get a confirmation on your thoughts. You might even be surprised" Armin offered to his friend.

"Maybe. But if I'm right, that could ruin our whole friendship. I think I will just let it slide for now and maybe see if I can get any sign that she likes me first. Anyways, I'm heading to bed. I'll talk to you in the morning" Eren pulled the covers to his chin and began drifting off to sleep. Armin sat in his bed, trying his best just to let Eren and Mikasa's relationship move naturally.

" _At least he admitted the possibility of dating her. I guess that is a step. But how can one man be so damn dense? Mikasa practically stares at him at all times, and blushes anytime somebody brings up his name. If that didn't tip him off, how long will this take?"_ Armin shrugged as sleep to take hold of him, dreaming of his coming date with Annie.

* * *

 **A/N: And there is chapter 1 of A Year to Remember! There will be a chapter for each month (but I will be updating about every week, not once a month), though I haven't decided if I want the year to be the school year (10 chapters) or an actual year (12 chapters). They will all be around 5k words and cover 4-5 separate days in the month. I hope you have enjoyed this, leave a review and follow/fave this story to show your support! Thank you so much for reading! (Reviews make my day, so drop them in here!)  
**

 **-Austin**


	2. September

**A Year to Remember- Chapter 2: September**

* * *

 **~September 5** **th** **: A Dating Life~**

"Man, these quizzes are getting tough" Connie stretched back in his chair after all the quizzes for that day had been passed in. Jean and Marco slumped back in their seats, obviously not having enjoyed the third quiz of the week.

"Does he really have to do this every single class?" Eren complained as he put his elbow on his desk and rested his head on his hand. Ever since the first class, Professor Levi had given them quizzes every single class. Their group met up every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday at night to study for the next morning's quiz, and somehow everybody was managing to hold their own. Mikasa and Armin both had A's, obviously, and were accompanied by Jean in that aspect. The rest of the group were pulling B's in the class, with Eren at the bottom of the barrel.

"I swear my quiz must be harder than everyone else's" Eren complained. Mikasa chuckled lightly while Jean turned around, resuming his same angry face he had whenever he looked at Eren.

"Maybe if you spent more time studying rather than distracting us in the study group, you would do better" Jean gritted his teeth while Eren leaned forward to meet his gaze.

"I'm just trying to keep this group sane, you all would be going crazy if I didn't help everyone relax every now and then" The tension was growing between the two until Jean gave a "humph" and turned back around. Eren grinned and resumed his cradling of his head while Mikasa and Armin simply shook their heads.

"Eren, you really shouldn't try to piss Jean off. He IS one of our friends, after all" Armin whispered to Eren.

"Then he shouldn't always try to make himself look better than me" Eren responded with the same anger he normally had, before replacing it with a more taunting tone and a sly grin.

"Say, Armin, didn't you say you were going to ask out Annie today?" At this, the rest of the group turned to stare at Armin, excited for this recent development. The blond began to blush, not wanting the sudden attention.

"W-well yeah, I was about to ask after class" Armin stammered out and silence ensued, everybody waiting for more details. When no more came, they all gave a collective groan, upset that Armin was teasing them.

"C'mon Armin, you have to tell us more than that! What does the great strategist have planned?" Connie was literally on the edge of his seat, turning and staring down Armin.

"I was just going to ask if she wanted to meet up at the library tomorrow….nothing special. I figured since she doesn't enjoy talking too much, a silent place would be better" Connie nodded along with Armin's explanation.

"I wouldn't exactly say the library is an ideal date, but the way you explain it makes sense. Good for you Armin, let us know how it goes" Marco gave an encouraging smile, which Armin appreciated given the pressing for details the other guys were giving.

"Jean, are you okay?" Marco's face turned to one of concern. Sure enough, Jean's face was a deep crimson color and he was sweating profusely. Jean seemed to ignore Marco and stared directly into Mikasa's eyes. After a few seconds of awkward silence in the group, Jean finally spoke up.

"M-Mikasa…would you like to….get dinner with me next Friday?" Jean looked as uncomfortable as any man could look, completely red in the face and sweating. Luckily, nobody seemed to notice because they were all staring at Mikasa for her answer. Mikasa kept her same emotionless face, only glancing over at Eren, who simply shrugged. She let out a sigh in response.

"Okay Jean. I'll have dinner with you" The entire group seemed to take a few seconds to react, since Mikasa didn't show any sign of actually _wanting_ to go, but that also seemed to be how she acted about everything. Connie and Marco immediately turned to congratulate Jean, who seemed ready to faint. Armin figured it must have taken Jean all class to muster up the courage to ask. He suddenly was very gracious that Annie had already expressed a little interest in him, since he didn't think he could ask her out without knowing what her response would be. His other thought was how surprised he was that Mikasa said yes to a date with somebody other than Eren. Then again, waiting for so long for somebody to notice her must be very taxing. At least that's what Armin hoped it was. In the back of his mind he was worried that Mikasa might just be going to make Eren jealous, a suspicion that started growing dramatically as he noticed Mikasa hiding in her scarf and glancing at Eren to gauge his reaction.

Eren sat back in his chair, seeming to think about something for a few minutes. He glanced over to see Mikasa hiding in her scarf, obviously trying to hide a smile, probably about her date with Jean. Eren wasn't exactly happy about her choice of guy, but at least she was going on a date. For as long as Eren had known her, she had always turned down guys. He figured that she must just have high standards, though that didn't explain why she picked Jean. He sighed, figuring he would never understand women. Nevertheless, everybody was seeming to get dates and he didn't want to feel left out. Glancing over at Sasha, who was busy talking to Mikasa about what she was going to wear on her date, he decided she would do for a date.

"Hey Sasha, since everybody else is having a date, you want to meet up for a movie or something next Saturday?" Sasha gaped at his question, as well as everyone else. She looked at Mikasa, who had buried her face into her scarf so that nobody could see her face.

"Uhh…are you sure Eren?" Sasha was desperate for him to change his mind. She didn't want to reject him, but she also could tell that Mikasa wasn't happy about him asking.

"Why not? There's no harm in just hanging out, right?" Eren gave her a reassuring grin and awaited her answer. Sasha desperately looked for somebody to come to her aid, but when nobody did she panicked.

"Sure Eren, I'd be happy to see a movie with you" She awkwardly stammered out. Eren seemed pleased at her answer, while Armin was shaking his head due to his friend's blindness and Mikasa looked ready to kill. Sasha was still trying to figure out how to explain to her roommate, who had mistakenly revealed her true feelings for Eren one night, the reason she agreed to go on a date when the bell dismissing them rang.

There were mixed emotions of excitement, disappointment and anger in the group as they gathered their things and walked out the class. Armin sighed and wondered how he was going to restrain himself from interfering with Eren to steer him onto the right dating path.

" _Oh well. I have another thing to think about right now. I really hope Eren realizes how Mikasa feels soon, I'm not sure if her heart can take him dating her roommate"_ Armin thought to himself as he pulled out his phone to ask Annie out for a date.

* * *

 **~September 6** **th** **: Armin~**

"Are you sure you will be alright?" Eren called from his spot on his bed. He was strumming a few notes on his guitar, bored that he was stuck in the room helping Armin get ready.

"Yeah, just some jitters for right now. I think I will make it through" Armin was adjusting his jeans and blue t-shirt for the hundredth time, still on the verge of changing since he wanted everything to be perfect. He was normally a very shy guy and would never have gone on a date with Annie if Connie had not made the first move for him. However, now that the ball was rolling he figured he would see how far his relationship could go with this new girl. He was excited and nervous at the same time. Lucky for him, they were just going to the library so he did not have to worry about saying the wrong thing, his self-confidence being somewhat low as it is.

"Armin, she already agreed to meet you today. Obviously she wants to be there, so relax" Eren got off his bed and cupped a hand on Armin's shoulder, trying to give him a little reassurance.

"Now hurry up and get out there, don't be late" Eren then proceeded to shove Armin out the door and shut it, despite the blond boy's face being full of protest.

"Well….I guess I better go then" Armin gulped audibly as he turned and began the short walk to the library.

He found his date sitting on the steps in front of the library, her hair pulled back in a bun and wearing jeans and an orange hoodie. Still, Armin was captivated by the beauty in her blue eyes. He swore he was only imagining it, but when Annie looked up and saw him, it almost looked like a smile formed on her face for a second before resuming her neutral expression.

"Hey Annie! I'm sorry to keep you waiting" Armin spoke with a smile, excited that he was on a date with the girl in front of him. Annie stared blankly at him for a second.

"I wasn't here long. Don't worry about it" After saying this, she lapsed back into silence. Armin internally sighed, not faulting her for being quiet. After all, that is what caused him to decide on the library for a date. Armin led her up the stairs and held the door open for her, then followed to a table in the back of the library. He wandered around and picked up a few books that caught his attention then returned to the table, finding Annie had already started skimming through a book. Instead of sitting across from her, Armin sat next to her and peered over to see what she was reading, but found she didn't seem to be interested in it since she turned the pages too quickly.

Armin hoped that it wasn't a bad idea coming here and began to execute the plan he had for this date. He opened the book he was carrying to a chapter about world wonders and looked for a paragraph about the ocean. In Trost there wasn't an ocean for hundreds of miles and Armin had never seen one in person, only pictures. He was hoping Annie hadn't been either. Once he found what he was looking for, he pushed the book to sit between him and Annie, getting her attention.

"This" Armin whispered as he pointed to the book, "is the ocean. It is one of my dreams to go there. It seems so calming, so peaceful in this crazy world. That is one of my goals, to take my friends out and enjoy a day there." Armin had the same hopeful voice he always had when talking of seeing the world. Now the Annie's attention was on the picture, he tried to keep his nervous feelings down and slowly snaked his arm under the table. His hand settled on hers, and he anxiously waited to see how she would react to the contact. The seconds felt like hours, until finally she gave him that rare smile of hers.

"I would very much like to see it too" She said in a whisper. Armin was ecstatic. He had been trying to figure out a way to get Annie to smile all week, but didn't know what her interests were. That was when his attention was turned onto the thing that seemed to always make his friends happy; the ocean. A mystery to them as they hadn't seen it, it was the one goal that they all had. So Armin decided to put the fate of the date on Annie wanting to see it too. If she didn't express interest, he did not know how he could get her to smile like she did. The rest of the date went smoothly. They shared an occasional muffled laugh while either whispering or scribbling notes to each other. Annie kept her calm face and only weakened it a few rare times during the date, but it was certainly enough for Armin. The two help hands the rest of the duration of the date, and Armin could feel a contentment flowing in his body he had not felt before, a comfort that this girl seemed to give to him, and a feeling that he was not wanting to let go of. A few hours ticked by like this until they finally decided to call it a day.

"Thank you for coming today" Armin said as he stretched his arms over his head, then quickly returned to lacing his fingers in Annie's. She was looking onward at the sun beginning to set, a mixture of oranges and purples filling the sky. Armin looked out too after following her gaze when she was silent, and after a second felt a strange pressure on his shoulder. He glanced out of the corner of his eye and was shocked to find she had leaned her head onto him, but he certainly was not complaining. They stood there watching the last of the sun disappear, perfectly happy with just standing there, no words needing to be exchanged between them.

* * *

 **~September 12** **th** **: Jean~**

"Mikasa, are you sure you want to go through with this?" Sasha asked as she ate a bag of chips. It had taken a few days of explaining that she didn't want to embarrass Eren and she wasn't going on the date because she was pursuing him before Mikasa began to speak to her again. Since then, they had gone back to their normal relationship, with Mikasa rarely speaking and only sometimes allowing her emotions to show through. This seemed to be one of those moments, and was the only time Sasha had ever seen Mikasa look a little nervous, though the reason she did was unknown. Mikasa was currently brushing her long hair and answered without turning from the bathroom mirror.

"Yes. What is wrong with going out to dinner with Jean?" She asked innocently. Sasha paused her eating and began to count off reasons on her fingers.

"Well, you don't actually like him, you are doing this just to get Eren's attention, which backfired hardcore, and for some unknown reason you seem nervous, which is the part that scares me the most." Sasha heard a "tch" come from the bathroom as Mikasa's initial response.

"I'm not nervous, I don't know why you think I would want Eren's attention and nothing is wrong with going to dinner with Jean. So calm down, Sasha. Anyways, how do I look?" Mikasa stepped out for Sasha to see. She was wearing a long blue dress that covered her completely, with her hair shining as it stretched to the middle of her back. The one oddity was the fact that she was still wearing her red scarf.

"You look great, 'Kasa. But why are you wearing the scarf?" Sasha tilted her head slightly with curiosity. Mikasa brought her right hand up to the red cloth and gently squeezed it.

"I never go anywhere without it. I don't see why there would be a problem with me wearing it" Well, Sasha had to admit that was true. Mikasa never seemed to go outside if she didn't have the scarf, no matter the weather. Sasha still didn't know why she treasured it so much, but she had a few guesses. She pushed the thoughts from her mind as she glanced over at the clock, seeing it was about time for her roommate to be going.

"Mikasa, you better start heading to dinner. I would hate for you to be late" Sasha stood from her bed and put her hands on Mikasa's shoulders, spinning her around and pushing her towards the door. Before the black haired girl could form a reasonable protest, Sasha had already pushed her outside and shut the door.

Mikasa sighed at hearing the door shut behind her. She decided it was too late to be able to back out of this and began the short walk to the little Italian restaurant that Jean had chosen. She was sure she wouldn't mind the date, but in the back of her mind she couldn't help but worry that her efforts of making Eren were going to be wasted. As she was lost in her thoughts, a familiar looking boy slowly came into view as she traveled down the street. He was wearing dark jeans and an orange polo shirt. His light brown hair was neatly groomed, and he seemed to be anxious. An anxiety that seemed to increase when he finally looked at Mikasa. Jean almost looked like he was shaking as he started walking towards his date.

"H-hey Mikasa! You look…..beautiful" Jean was honestly stunned as he looked at her. He always knew she was beautiful, but when she dressed up like this she really shone. So much so that he didn't even mind that she was wearing that scarf for some reason.

"Thanks" Mikasa mumbled, realizing that she had no idea what people did on dates. She had only ever felt angry at the concept, since the one person she knew going on dates was Eren, and it was always with other girls. Jean held the door to the restaurant open for her and she went inside. He mumbled something to the clerk in front of them and after a few seconds they were led to a table with a small "reserved" sign on it. The two of them sat down and a rather noticeable silence took its place at the table. Jean seemed too anxious to speak and Mikasa frankly didn't care to make this date memorable. She had only wanted Eren to see her accept the date when the opportunity came, after that nothing mattered. She was still frustrated at herself for how much it had backfired too.

"Wh-what do you think you will get to eat?" Jean stammered out. Mikasa sighed, figuring this was how this date would go. She spent the dinner only replying in short sentences whenever Jean spoke, and not saying much else. She could see Jean was growing more and more dejected, but she did not feel remorse for her actions. Whether or not Jean enjoyed this date was of no matter to her, for after her parents were taken from her she realized she couldn't hold too many people close in her heart. If she did, then there were only more chances for her to get hurt. More chances for her to become lost in a sea of despair. And she didn't know if there would be a boy with the red scarf waiting to pull her out next time. Thus she never let anybody into her heart without very good reason. Jean, as of now, did not have that reason.

By the end of the date, Jean's shoulders were slumped as he followed Mikasa out of the restaurant.

"Thank you Jean. I guess I will see you in class Monday" Mikasa stated before turning to walk to her dorm. Jean reached out and grabbed her arm.

"Did you….want to come out here?" He gathered the courage to say. Mikasa stared at him with her grey, emotionless eyes.

"I could have said no" was all she replied with before pulling her arm from him and walking the rest of the way, leaving Jean to watch her go, his shoulders trembling as he did not know how to interpret what his date had said. Cursing to himself, he turned and headed back to his own dorm, angry at a lot of things, but for some reason that he did not know, he found most of his anger directed towards Eren. As if there was a way that Eren had caused their date to go so badly.

* * *

 **~September 13** **th** **: Eren~**

Eren smiled as he stared at the magazine he was absent mindedly scanning over. He was laying on his back on the floor wearing jeans, a purple shirt and a tan jacket that his mother got him last Christmas. There was about thirty minutes he had to waste before he went to get Sasha for their date at the movies. They were going to see some romantic comedy that she had picked out, a little to his surprise. He understood the comedy part but Sasha hadn't exactly seemed like a sucker for romance. Then again, there were people he would have been much more surprised with if they had picked a romance movie.

 _Mikasa…._

The conversation he had with Armin a month ago entered his mind without permission. He didn't know why he kept thinking about it ever since they all planned their dates. It was as if Jean and Mikasa going on a date bothered him. As if, subconsciously, he was jealous that it wasn't him going on the date with Mikasa. A dry laugh escaped his lips as he thought about it. A cold, bitter laugh. He found the situation ridiculous, but at the same time he couldn't help but feel some truth in his thoughts. Shaking his head, Eren stood up off the floor and checked the clock.

 _Fifteen more minutes._

Eren let out a sigh. He wasn't particularly patient, and normally he would pass time talking to Armin. Though Armin had disappeared under the excuse of having to study, but Eren knew in reality he was sneaking off to the coffee shop to see Annie. He found himself in the room alone more often than not ever since Armin's date had happened. He was happy for his friend finding a girlfriend, but he also felt a bit of loneliness gripping at him during these times. During these times, he found that all he wanted was to talk to Mikasa. It made sense to him of course, she was one of his best friends. But then, why did it seem like she was always on his mind nowadays? It wasn't like this had happened before in all the years he had known her.

Eren snapped back into reality and saw there were only five minutes left until he was supposed to go on his date. He decided he might as well go now, since it was better than waiting around. He left the room and locked the door behind him before heading up the stairs. He came to the end of the hall and knocked on Mikasa and Sasha's door.

"She's coming" Mikasa called from the other side of the door. Eren slumped against the opposite wall and tuned out the hushed voices coming from inside the room, not interested in what they were saying. After what seemed like ten minutes, the door finally opened, revealing Sasha, who was wearing a simple orange and white dress that stretched down to her ankles. It may have seemed dressy for going to a movie, but seeing Sasha wearing it made it seem a little casual for some reason. Eren nodded his head in acknowledgement before turning to walk to the elevator, not saying a word. Sasha turned to look to Mikasa for an answer as to why he hadn't said anything, but even Mikasa wore a look of puzzlement.

"Hey wait up!" Sasha called before walking quickly to catch up to Eren. Eren turned to look at her, but didn't show any interest in his gaze.

"Hey. We should probably hurry and get to the movies" Was all he said to her. Sasha looked down at her feet, confused on why Eren had gone from being so excited when asking her out to seeming like he didn't give a damn at all. In truth, that is how he felt. When Sasha opened the door, Eren only really noticed Mikasa. She wasn't wearing anything special, but for some reason Eren felt something in his chest heat up when he saw her. A feeling he had never had when seeing Mikasa. He was still thinking about why it had happened and what it had meant, so he wasn't paying any mind to his date. He didn't really care about the date at this point. All he cared about was figuring out why the hell Mikasa suddenly had this effect on him. It made him angry thinking she had caused that reaction in him. He didn't let his anger show, at least he knew better to do that on his date. Way back down the hall, Mikasa returned to her room, shutting the door and standing in the small hallway, a smile tugging at her lips while she held onto her scarf. She could have been mistaken, but she could have sworn that when Sasha had come out, Eren had only looked at herself. Her heart fluttered as she replayed the moment in her mind.

The date didn't go well. For Sasha especially. Eren took her to the movie but never really acknowledged her presence at all. During the movie he leaned to the armrest opposite of her and propped his head up on his arm, falling asleep. At least the movie was decent. On the way back no words were spoken from the green eyed boy either, despite Sasha's attempts at making a little conversation. All he replied with were nods and grunts. It was as if the entire time something else had filled his thoughts and he was stuck in a trance. Eren gave her another nod when they got back to her room, effectively having said nothing the entire date except when they had first left the dorm. Sasha went into the room, finding Mikasa anxiously waiting to hear how it went. Before Mikasa could open her mouth and feign like she wasn't _that_ interested in how the date with the boy she loved went, Sasha held up a hand and stared at her.

"Don't worry, 'kasa. I'm pretty sure the entire date he was only thinking about you." Sasha sunk into her bed after kicking her shoes off. She let out a big annoyed moan, wondering if she really was that uninteresting that a guy that asked her out wouldn't even say a word to her. Meanwhile, Mikasa turned onto her side on her bed, facing away from her roommate. She had a large grin on her face as she tried to bury her face in her scarf.

 _His scarf_

* * *

 **~September 25** **th** **: Revelations~**

"You're already having a second date?" Eren inquired to his blond friend across from him, playing along as if he didn't know Armin had been sneaking out to see Annie every chance he got. They were out on a late night snack trip, visiting a little diner down the street that served breakfast all day and never closed. Of all three of the dates that had happened that month, Armin's was the only one that could really be called a success. A fact that the blond enjoyed quite a bit, since he was worried when Eren had gone on his date. He knew Mikasa's date was nothing but a façade to get Eren's attention and still smiled when he thought of how badly her plan had backfired. Luckily, it seemed Eren had turned his attention to just Mikasa now that the month was ending, or at least Armin hoped that's what was happening. Eren never explicitly expressed this interest in Mikasa, but he did seem to be trying to spend more time with her ever since his date with Sasha.

Armin looked up at Eren, who was playing with his food while staring off at the wall, deep in thought.

"Still bothering you, huh?" Armin tapped Eren's shoulder. Eren had already seemed to forget that he had asked Armin a question.

"Huh? Oh…yeah I guess" Eren replied before returning to play with his food. Eren had not said much about his date, only that he couldn't get his mind off of something the whole time. He never explained what it was, so Armin had only a few guesses in his head. The one he hoped was right was that it had something to do with Mikasa, but Eren would never confirm any of his ideas, only shrug when Armin brought it up.

"Anyways, yeah I'm meeting Annie for some coffee next week. Nothing special, just a nice date" Armin smiled at the thought. Eren shook his head from across the table.

"You are taking the girl that works at a coffee shop to get coffee? Doesn't seem that well thought out to me" Eren said as he played with his bagel. This whole time, he hadn't taken one bite of the snacks they bought.

"It was her idea, so I think I'm in the clear. Are you going to eat or is that food your new toy?" Armin finally broke Eren out of his trance. Eren stared at him with those piercing green eyes, not angry or anything, just still in thought. Finally, he slammed he fist on the table.

"I know what it is!" He exclaimed. Armin was thankful nobody else was in the diner to hear the loud commotion. He waved a hand in apology to the manager before turning back to his friend.

"Well, what has been bugging you" Armin asked with a small hitch in his voice, hoping to find out Eren's true feelings towards Mikasa. Eren leaned in close as if the information was classified.

"I think…..I might have had a bad lunch that day" Armin slammed his head down onto the table and let out a groan. After all of that, this was what he had been waiting on to hear. He was about to just resign and give up hoped about Eren ever realizing his feelings for Mikasa, or even the hoped that Eren even had feelings for her, when he mumbled something under his breath. Armin's face drew a blank as he his mind desperately tried to ensure he had heard correctly. What Eren said had been barely audible, and it was unlikely that he would repeat it. But, had Armin truly heard correctly….? He replayed it multiple times in his head, before allowing the hope about Eren and Mikasa to creep back into him. He looked up at his roommate, who was lost in thought again. Armin once again replayed what he believed Eren said in his head.

 _It almost sounded like…..like he mumbled, "That could explain why I felt my chest get hot when I saw Mikasa"_

* * *

 **A/N: Another month down! Sorry if my last A/N was a little ambiguous, I will be updating on a weekly/biweekly basis. Thank you for all of the positive support so far, I hope you will all continue to enjoy the story and let me know if you don't enjoy certain things! It definitely helps when I'm told what parts you all like/dislike, that way I can put in more of one thing and take out another. Don't worry my Eremika and Springles lovers, there will be some steps coming in the October chapter! So hang in there! Also if anybody has concerns with Mikasa seeming to show her emotions more than normal, I tried to give a small explanation that she accidentally told Sasha how she felt about Eren earlier and thus she talked about her emotions more freely, as she does with Armin. This chapter was a little tough to write because I didn't want the dates to be too similar, as well as some personal stuff that made me not want to write for a little while. Hopefully I can get my next couple chapters out sooner. Also I have added something to my profile page where I will keep track of how close I am to finishing the next chapter, in case you all get curious about me taking a while. Until next time,  
**

 **-Austin**

 *****Note to those concerned about how Mikasa is acting-yes, the show is full of assholes and yes, I wrote her like that for a reason. This is where character growth begins, but there has to be a starting position for them to grow. Next chapter will be Jean's growth and then in a few more Mikasa will have her growth. There is a plan, don't worry. I understand Mikasa isn't very likeable right now, but she will become better soon. Just trust me*****


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